And Secretary General of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities Dr. Zahi Hawass is coming back to town to give a talk on March 8th. Deets below.

Dr. Zahi Hawass giving Mayor Gavin Newsom a tour last year:

Click to expand.

FINAL WEEKS OF KING TUT AT THE DE YOUNG
Extended hours, Hawass lecture part of final weeks through March 28.

SAN FRANCISCO—Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs enters its final weeks at the de Young Museum before heading to its next presentation in New York City in April. The exhibition closes on Sunday, March 28. The de Young will offer extended viewing hours and a special lecture by noted Egyptologist Dr. Zahi Hawass during the last few weeks.

Extended Viewing Hours
Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs will offer extended hours on the following days:
• Saturday, March 20, 9 am–9 pm, last ticket at 7:30 pm
• Saturday, March 27, 9 am–9 pm, last ticket at 7:30 pm
• Sunday, March 28, 9 am–9 pm, last ticket at 7:30 pm
On those days, the Museum Café will remain open until 7 pm. The de Young’s permanent collection will close at the regular time of 5:15 pm and the Museum Tower will close at 5:30 pm. Exhibition tickets are available through www.ticketmaster.com.

March 8 Lecture by Dr. Zahi Hawass
Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, Egyptologist and raconteur will deliver a lecture, Mysteries of Tutankhamun Revealed, at the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House on Monday, March 8 at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $15 (general admission) and available through www.ticketmaster.com. Dr. Hawass’ lecture will share information discovered through the two-year examination of the DNA and CT scans of Tutankhamun and 11 other royal mummies in the collection of the Cairo Museum. Among the findings are the details of Tut’s health conditions (cleft palate, clubfoot, malaria, bone disease), his family lineage, paternity of two fetal mummies found in his tomb, and the reassessment of stylistic depictions of Tut in sculpture and artifacts found in his tomb.

Organization
The exhibition is organized by National Geographic, Arts and Exhibitions International, and AEG Exhibitions, with cooperation from the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities. Northern Trust is the proud cultural partner, and American Airlines is the official airline of the exhibition. The San Francisco presentation is sponsored by Athena Troxel Blackburn, Mrs. Thomas C. Crowley, Sr., Rajnikant and Helen Desai and Beringer Vineyards.

Visiting the de Young
The de Young, designed by Herzog & de Meuron and located in Golden Gate Park, is the fourth most visited fine art museum in the United States. It showcases American art from the 17th through the 21st centuries, international textile arts and costumes, and art from the Americas, the Pacific, and Africa.

See? The line started at the front, then headed towards the Japanese Tea Garden and then on off to JFK Jr. Drive and points unknown.

Now people, you didn’t expect that the mummy would be traveling around the world, did you? That thing’s not leaving Egypt ever – it never has and it never will. And the iconic funeary mask and Selket – you could see those things back in 1979 but not anymore. And actually, Egypt’s on a museum-building kick these days, so when this traveling show’s over, it’s over - the stuff on this tour won’t ever be coming back to America.

“Tickets will be available on site only, with a limit of four tickets per adult for that day. All tickets are first-come, first-served and timed and dated.”

On the other hand:

“The permanent collections of the de Young will be free to the public all weekend and free programming will include children’s art making, fortune tellers, tarot card readers, belly and sword dancers and a dj spinning in Wilsey Court, as well as a festival of mummy movies screened from noon to 5 pm in the Koret Auditorium.”

Join the commotion involving the Boy King:

Here’s some king bling – the cobra adjusts your attitude and, after you stop squirming, the vulture finishes you off. This is the view I had at the de Young – it’s behind some glass but you can get super close to it:

Click to expand. Respect.

Look at all the fuss they went to so that you and yours can come to town, park for free (probably, it’s really easy to park for free if you’re willing to walk a little to get to the museum – if you’re stuck in traffic or constantly circling, you’re doing it wrong) and see the show for free.

Lots of painstaking work involved:

Check out all the gritty nitty of this special upcoming weekend after the jump.

Actually, if you want to get a bottle to go as a souvenir gift for your friends at home, you could do a lot worse. I don’t think you can actually get a bottle at the museum, but they’ll sell a glassful to you. And what’s wrong with that?

All the deets:

TUT CUVÉE, SPARKLING WINE FIT FOR A PHARAOH, LAUNCHES ON SEPTEMBER 10
A portion of the proceeds goes to funding school visits to the King Tut exhibition.

SAN FRANCISCO – The de Young Museum, in partnership with Iron Horse Vineyards, is pleased to announce the debut of Tut Cuvée, a limited edition, premium sparkling wine created to commemorate the exhibition, Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs, currently on view at the museum. One dollar of the purchase price of every bottle will go towards sending school children to see the exhibition for free. Over 350 Bay Area school children will benefit from this initiative.

“We have created wine for Presidents, Prime Ministers, Kings, Queens, the Pope and now a Pharaoh. But my family and I are most proud that sales of Tut Cuvée will send so many Bay Area kids to see the exhibition and experience ancient Egypt face-to-face,” explains Joy Sterling, CEO of Iron Horse Vineyards.

Iron Horse Vineyards Winemaker David Munksgard crafted Tut Cuvée from a 2006 vintage Blanc de Noirs made from predominantly Pinot Noir grapes with a splash of Chardonnay. The dosage, or finishing element, for the sparkling wine was selected through a special tasting session conducted at the winery in Sebastopol in August. The panel consisted of David Munksgard, Fine Arts Museums Director John Buchanan and Spencer Christian, host of KGO-TV’s View from the Bay and a celebrated oenophile. “We crafted Tut Cuvée to embody all the qualities one would ascribe to the boy king – regal, elegant, and very dry!” quips John Buchanan.

To ensure a sparkling wine fit for a pharaoh, only 500 cases will be produced in this limited edition. Tut Cuvée will be available for sale by the glass in the de Young Museum Café, by the bottle or case at the Iron Horse Vineyards tasting room in Sebastopol, and at fine wine shops throughout the Bay Area. The wine is also available online at www.ironhorsevineyards.com. Tut Cuvée will retail for $29.99 per bottle.

Here’s Tut’s actual Anubis, the main man who was at the ready for 3000 years in Egypt. There’s a lot to learn when you see the Tut show in Golden Gate Park. And, bonus, it’s even open tomorrow, the Fourth of July, last entry at 2:00 PM.

Great care was taken to get this wooden bust of the boy king up on its perch yesterday. Click to expand:

Easy now:

Here’s a closeup of the famous teen:

And here’s the mise-en-scene:

Over in another room, experts are using thousands of photographs to help with condition reporting, making sure the rigors of travel aren’t taking their toll. Queen Nefertiti lost her nose over the past few thousand years but looks great otherwise.

The whole shebang starts on June 27, 2009, and prices start at just $22.50.

This giant bronze tortoise has been counting the hours since 1979, patiently waiting for the return of the Tut exhibition.

“Known as the “Navigators’ Dial“, this sundial is dedicated to three early explorers of the California coast. The dial itself is a sliced bronze globe of the earth sitting on the back of a tortoise. Overall, the globe hemisphere is about 2-1/2 feet in diameter, showing the world in relief centered on California. The flat face of the hemisphere is a beautiful vertical reclining dial.”

And now, on with the show:

JUNE PROGRAMS AT THE DE YOUNG:

Thursday 6/4/09
de Young: Koret Auditorium
10:00 am
Art History Lecture: To Tut or Not to Tut: King Tut in the Context of Egypt’s 18th Dynasty, Dr. Carol Redmount, Professor of Near Eastern Studies, U.C. Berkeley. Lecture admission is $4 for the general public and $3 for FAMSF members. No museum admission required. Information: 415.750.3638

Friday 6/5/09
de Young: Koret Auditorium
7:00–8:30 pmde Young Poetry Series presents Tobias Wolff. General admission is $5 and free for members and college students with ID. Purchase tickets at the door or at www.famsf.org. No museum admission is required. Information: 415-750-3531 or amartin@famsf.org

Thursday 6/11/09
de Young: Koret Auditorium
10:00 am
Art History Lecture: Furnishing a Tomb for Tutankhamun’s Subjects, Dr. Edward Bleiberg, Curator of Egyptian, Classical, and Ancient Middle Eastern Art, Brooklyn Museum. This lecture is co-sponsored by the Ancient Art Council. Admission is $4 for the general public and $3 for FAMSF members. No museum admission required. Information: 415.750.3638

Friday 6/12/09
de Young
5:00–8:45 pm
Friday Nights at the de Young presents “Honor the Basket,” celebrating Native California baskets and weavers. Museum admission is not required for most programs. Information: 415.750.7694 or nschach@famsf.org

Saturday 6/13/09
de Young: Koret Auditorium
3:00 pm
Ancient Art Council Lecture: Discovering Tutankhamun’s Tomb, by Dr. Edward Bleiberg, Curator of Egyptian, Classical, and Ancient Middle Eastern Art, Brooklyn Museum. Howard Carter became a household name when he discovered Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922. This lecture examines his great success and amazing finds in the Valley of the Kings. The lecture is co-sponsored by the Docent Council. Suggested donation is $5 and free for AAC members and docents. Information: 415.750.3686 or ancientart@famsf.org

Thursday 6/18
de Young: Koret Auditorium
1:00 pm
Art History Lecture: Art and Power in the Central African Savanna, Dr. Constantine Petridis, Curator of African Art, Cleveland Museum of Art. Admission is $4 for the general public and $3 for FAMSF members. No museum admission required. Information: 415.750.3638

Thursday 6/25/09
de Young
9:00 am–5:00 pm
Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs Members-Only Preview Hours. Tickets required.

Thursday 6/25/09
de Young: Koret Auditorium
10:00 am
Art History Lecture: Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs, Dr. Renée Dreyfus, Curator in Charge, Ancient Art and Interpretation, FAMSF. Admission is $4 for the general public and $3 for FAMSF members. No museum admission required. Information: 415.750.3638

Friday 6/26/09
de Young
9:00 am–8:45 pm
Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs Members-Only Preview Hours. Tickets required.

Friday 6/26/09
de Young
5:00–8:45 pm
Friday Nights at the de Young presents music and dance, celebrating Tutankhamun
and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs. Museum admission not required for most programs. Information: 415.750.7694 or nschach@famsf.org